GDMBR Day 52

• Start: Informal campsite in Flathead National Forest

• Finish: Glacier Motel, Columbia Falls, MT

• Miles: 81.4 miles

• Odometer: 2,439.7 miles

• Ascent: 5,400 feet

• Descent: 5,900 feet

• Location: https://share.garmin.com/Judice

Today I saw a grizzly bear! I was on a slow, long climb in the Flathead National Forest when I came across a grizzly bear in the middle of the dirt road. He saw me approaching and stopped and just stared at me for about 2 to 3 minutes. I grabbed my bear spray and pulled off the safety mechanism. He moseyed off the road and I waited five minutes and rode on past. I guess I’m grateful we surprised each other on an incline and that I did not surprise him flying downhill. However, when I rode past his last known location I was going ever so slow because of the grade. In the granny gear, I was pedaling as fast as my legs would spin. Despite being in a little bit of a foul mood all day, seeing a grizzly made my day.

I have not had a nice sunshiny day in quite a while. Every day has been overcast and rainy, including today. The skies opened up as I was descending out of the mountain into civilization, the town of Ferndale, MT. The temperatures were also in the mid 50s which makes for a difficult cycling combination of rain and cold. Feeling pretty miserable, I rode over to the Ferndale Market to dry out and thaw out. Like many of the small town markets, they have a little bit of everything, including pizza. I ordered a medium pizza, drank some hot coffee, dried out my stuff, charged my electronics, and re-supplied with snacks. The staff let me sit at a little table in the corner where I was able to eat my pizza and watch people come and go, mostly picking out six packs of beer. There does not appear to be a consistent beer choice.